Uncharted Territory
by Zissou Intern
Summary: To prevent Ciela from falling into the clutches of Bellum, the Ocean King seals the fairy in human form, inadvertently complicating her relationship with a certain sea captain. Linebeck/Ciela


01

The _S. S. Linebeck_ cut through the waters of the Great Sea, expelling steam in short, quick bursts as it chuffed and chugged along. The tiny vessel was chartering a course towards Mercay Island, and as the sun set in the western hemisphere, its waning light projected a luminous path out across the water that extended far into the distance.

Standing astride the ship's prow was none other than Captain Linebeck himself: tall, dark, and handsome, he was a dashing man in the prime of his years, overseeing the blue tumult that was his domain. His red ascot whipped behind him, stirred by the wind of their passage; he was aware that he cut an impressive picture, but there were none present to behold, so he had to conjure up an audience in his imagination.

Well, there may have been _one_ present. Then again, the golden orb floating beside the man may have only been a trick of the light.

Breaking their (deliberately maintained) silence, the man turned his head to address the winged mote.

" 'Spirit of Courage', eh? Could've fooled me."

"I _did_ fool you," Ciela reminded the sea captain, bobbing up and down beside him. Linebeck shrugged his shoulders, raising his arms dismissively.

"You even fooled yourself, powder puff."

The ball of light swarmed back and forth, agitated by his words, before returning to pulsate angrily at the man's shoulder.

"Grandpa _said_ it was for the better that I didn't know! Weren't you listening to a word he said back at the beach? Or have your greedy thoughts stuffed up your ears?"

Linebeck's eyes rolled heavenward.

"As I was saying," he articulated, "before I was so _rudely_ interrupted, 'Spirit of Foolhardiness' would have been a more apt name."

"I'm not foolhardy!" the fairy cried, outraged. "And at any rate, I'd rather be foolhardy than a coward any day! I may be yellow on the outside now, but you're yellow through and through!"

"If _courage_ is what drives a man — or _fairy_ — to run headlong into a monster's nest, then you can count me out," Linebeck agreed. "It takes more courage to just say no, if you ask me. Any real swashbuckler knows his limits, and I draw the line at suicide, sugarplum."

"You draw the line at getting that ridiculous coat of yours dirty," the fairy fumed. "You're just lucky you have Link and I around to pick up the slack for you, you bum!"

"Hey! My coat is anything _but_ ridiculous! It cost a pretty rupee, I can tell you! You're just jealous of how dignified I look when the best you can hope for is getting mistaken for a firefly on a good day!"

"_Take it back!_" Ciela chimed shrilly. The two of them were nose-to-nose by now; at least, Linebeck could only assume that they were. The duo continued to squabble incoherently, completely oblivious to the fact that old man Oshus had risen from below deck to check up on them.

"Is everything all right up here?" he inquired passively. Ciela whirled away from the loathsome captain, bristling like a tiny, furious star.

"As right as it can be when we have the world's _wrongest_ man captaining our ship!" she seethed. "Why can't we just hire someone else, Grandpa? There are hundreds of boats patrolling these oceans every day!"

"I'm standing right here," Linebeck interjected, as if it would have made a bit of difference. Ciela shook like a child's rattle, agitated beyond words. Oshus chuckled jovially at the pair.

"What's so funny, old man?" Linebeck demanded. "Are you going to stand there and let this mayfly disrespect me on my own ship? I have a mind to drop the lot of you at the next port and shove off!"

"I wish you _would_ shove off!" Ciela fired back.

"Quiet, both of you!" Oshus bid them both suddenly, and the two obliged him, silenced by the uncanny quality of his voice that could have commanded fishes from the deep if it had a mind to. It was then that the two of them noticed the dark clouds converging overhead. Ciela flared brightly with alarm, and Linebeck's jaw dropped in astonishment.

"What? Where did those thunderheads come from?" He sounded outraged, as if their appearance was a personal affront to him, but he also sounded frightened.

"That's no thunderhead," Oshus intoned severely. "I had wondered… if sensing the spirits' return would be enough to wake him from his slumber…" Linebeck threw his arms up suddenly, evidently inviting an explanation.

"Start talking sense, old man! I won't tolerate secrets being kept aboard my ship!"

"Ciela, would you get Link, please? Now."

The fairy sped past them, disappearing below deck to retrieve the boy. She returned with him seconds later; Link glanced at them all, perplexed, before raising his head to gaze at the darkening sky.

"UWA?" the boy gasped. The boat, stalled beneath them, began to rotate slowly on a sinister current, revolving as the water began to form an ominous funnel beneath it. Linebeck, who had been previously annoyed, was now quaking in his boots.

"W-what is it? What's happening?" he stammered, looking uncharacteristically seasick (although in the face of danger, it was quite a characteristic look for him to be wearing).

"Bellum," Oshus said cryptically. "He's found us."

"Bellum?" Linebeck cried. The name sent a deep shiver coursing through Ciela… where had she heard that name before…?

"The Kraken; the scourge of the Great Sea… oh, if only there was more time to explain…!"

But their time had run out. The boiling black clouds pressed down on them, their evil energy creating a vacuum — and to Ciela's horror, she watched as Link's pockets were yanked once, twice, and her siblings were wrenched from concealment. The two fairies, having been sleeping dormant in the boy's tunic, were taken by complete surprise, and had no time to defend themselves or their freedom as they were sucked upward into the sky. The twin lights, one blue, and one red, blinked out as they vanished from view.

"Linebeck!" Oshus cried over the roar of the elements. "Protect Ciela!"

But the sea captain had already retreated, his boots pounding across the planks as he dove for cover behind the cannon ramparts, leaving Ciela stranded in the maelstrom.

The little fairy beat her wings valiantly — even if she had to strain every tendon in her tiny frame to its snapping point, she would resist the pull of evil until her last breath. She wished she could have put up a longer fight; inevitably, her vigorous whirring slowed as she exhausted, and she could feel the powerful winds beginning to drag her out to sea and into the heart of the darkness.

"Link!" she cried helplessly. "Grandpa!"

It was the latter who answered her desperate plea; with an agility she would have never thought possible for so ancient a frame, Oshus leapt the distance to her in a single bound, his gnarled staff raised high above his head. She heard the old man string together words in a forgotten, guttural tongue — there was a bright flash of light to rival the vortex, to beat back the brewing cauldron of clouds and the thick, inky tendrils beginning to snake their way up the sides of the boat — Ciela was blinded by it, engulfed in it, and she felt as if her entire existence was being pulled apart at the seams….

When the fairy fell to the floor of the deck, she hit with a resounding thud, consciousness fleeing her as the light dissipated. Oshus likewise collapsed. Within moments, the ominous clouds had parted, chasing across the sky as they retreated back over the horizon. Once he was reassured that the coast was clear, Linebeck rose from concealment, joining Link in silent consideration over the fallen bodies of their comrades. The younger boy stood with his mouth agape; Linebeck merely crossed his arms, squinting at the familiar old man and the strange young woman sprawled beside him.

"Well, who the heck is this?" he wondered aloud.


End file.
